


Old Flames

by scarlettvictoria



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Difficult Decisions, Drug Use, F/F, F/M, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, M/M, Shaw is a butt, Shaw is obsessed with karaoke, not sure where to go from here, shy teravainen, still working on this, toews is a bro, will add tags as needed for the story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-06
Updated: 2016-03-05
Packaged: 2018-04-30 07:12:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5154938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scarlettvictoria/pseuds/scarlettvictoria
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It had been years of no contact or sighting of his long time friend but his sister had had enough of that. Now Scott was trying to bring her back into his life and keep her there. Things were different and he had changed. But can he make her see that he wasn't the same man from 2011? </p><p>Will trying to repair a lifelong friendship rekindle what they had?</p><p> </p><p>  <i>Try not to think about you</i><br/><i>But it ain’t workin'</i><br/><i>Why put out a fire when it’s still burnin'</i><br/><i>Just when I think movin' on is gettin' closer</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. You can't hide anymore

**Author's Note:**

> So I decided to jump into the world of Hockey fanfiction. I'm worried I won't get the personalities right but just work with me. If it seems really out of character please let me know and I'll try and fix it. But other than that let me know what you think!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit: I changed the spelling of her nickname. Caity is pronounced the same as Katie. I just wanted to go with something that was spelled more similar to her name.

She always wondered why she did this to herself. Why did she keep tabs on him and come to every home game to watch his team play only to spend most of the night staring at him on the bench. He never knew she was there and she planned to keep it that way. His family kept in contact with her, his mother mostly and was sort of the insider or the mole providing information about his latest doings. No matter how much she tried to talk herself out of using her parents season pass for home games, Caity always ended up in the same seat every game that gave her a perfect view of everything, including him but it was hard to miss him in all his six and half foot glory. The pads accentuated his large form in the corner of his team’s glassed in section and once her eyes landed on him not even ten large grown men skating by her seat could grab her attention.

Scott was just too perfect. He always had been.

The more she watched him the more she regretted leaving him years ago, but as soon as she thought about the past, Caity had to shut it down or else risk stirring up painful memories. Ever since they parted ways in college, she had done her best to avoid contact with him other than the news she would hear from his mother or, sometimes, his sister. Caity knew that he’d given up alcohol and gotten better. How he made his way up the ladder in his hockey career. His first shutout game, which she watched once she found out that he would be starting.

Even all these years later, Caity can’t get Scott off her mind. But she knew that he wasn’t the same way. She knew about his girlfriend since he didn’t keep it a secret…. Unlike their past involvement. She could never call it a relationship considering how damaging it was to both parties and the fact that it was never made official. If anything, they had been friends with benefits, and she hated that. She didn’t have the stomach to attempt to talk to him since Christmas 2013 when she called his mother to wish her happy holidays but instead of hearing a sweet woman on the other end, she was greeted by a low, gruff tone she hadn’t heard in person for a long time.

_As she placed the last gift to take to her parents place on the table, Caity remembered that she had to call Cindy and see what time was best to stop by and see the family. She was hoping that tonight would be the perfect time that would allow her to swing by to her own parents place around seven o’clock._

_Grabbing her phone, she hit the familiar contact icon and sat down on the couch, waiting for the ringing tones to end. When it finally did, she didn’t expect to hear a male voice on the other end. “Hello? Thank you for calling Cue ball’s pool hall, eight ball speaking.”_

_Caity nearly dropped the phone as the sound of his voice drifted into her ear, causing her to tense. She didn’t know what to say and remained speechless for a few moments before that same voice brought her back to her senses. “Hello? Are you there?”_

_With a shake of her head, she tried to disguise her voice by raising it to a higher pitch as she stated, “Is Cindy there?”_

_“Yeah she is. Just a second.” The muffled sounds of him shouting out for his mother now drifted through and all Caity wanted to do was forget talking to anyone else besides Scott. But she knew that wasn’t the best option. “She’s coming. She was upstairs. Give her another minute.”_  
  
_“Thank you, Scotch.”_

_It came out before she could really stop herself and inside she winced as the old nickname slipped out. It became rather quiet on the line causing her to wonder if he had walked away. But she knew it was too good to be true. “Excuse me? What did you just say? Did you just call me…. Caity? Is that you?”_

_Her stomach gave a violent flip at the sound of her name in his voice that seemed to brand itself into her brain. Before he could say anymore, she hung up and tossed the phone onto the other end of the couch, ignoring when it started vibrating from incoming calls from Cindy, not knowing whether it was really her or Scott trying to reach her. All she could do was text Cindy that she’s be over in a few days to drop off her gift before she turned her phone off and headed to her own parents place. She could not do with seeing Scott face to face today._

_That was the night her two years of sobriety came to an end._

The jeering of the crowd brought her back to her senses and away from the memory of that embarrassing night. She looked around quickly to assess the situation. Regulation time had ended up with the teams being tied which meant they would be going to overtime. Sighing, she settled into her seat for an interesting OT period.

\----------------------------------------------------------------

Chelsea Dagger rang throughout the United Center amongst the cheers of the twenty two thousand or so fans that turned out for the game as Vermette scored the only goal in the shootout giving the Blackhawks the win. She stood and cheered with them, seriously happy that they won, but she kept looking over at the bench, not wanting to miss that smile on Darling’s face; he was absolutely beaming as he went over and congratulated Crawford while the rest of the team saluted the fans as they skated off the ice to return to the locker room.  

After the stars of the game were said and the short interview was done, people started filing out slowly to return back to their home or to go out and celebrate the win. Caity knew better than to try and leave just yet. It was called the Madhouse for a reason and she would wait a good half hour or more before she got up to leave, giving others time to get upset or pissed at the traffic jams or subway congestion. Instead she pulled out her phone and smiled at the text message from Cindy about the game and saying that she saw Caity in the crowd. She quickly responded and decided to spend her time catching up with Mrs. Darling.

**_Me: I guess the perks of my parent’s seats are that I’m so close to the ice._ **

**_Cindy: You could call that a perk. You probably have a fantastic view of the game._ **

**_Me: Well you could come with me next time and find out._ **

**_Cindy: You know I couldn’t do that. Scott would see me and then ask me why I didn’t mention I was going to be there._ **

**_Me: That’s his issue. I’m just inviting a friend out for a good time. Maybe Sarah or Lauren would like to come with me sometime. Or even Mr. Darling. One thing I know is that going to a hockey game alone is not as fun unless you have a friend with you._ **

**_Cindy: I’ll extend the offer to them all. Scott might take you up on that. As for me I might come. If he’s starting I’ll definitely be there._ **

**_Me: Well let’s hope that he starts another home game soon._ **

**_Cindy: So what are you doing now that the game is over? Have you tried to leave yet? I can just imagine the mayhem there right now!_ **

**_Me: No I haven’t left yet. I never leave right afterwards. I don’t want to chance dying. Security here has gotten used to me just hanging around and waiting for everyone else to clear out. I think they’re okay with it because I’m a season ticket holder. But eh…. I’m just glad they’ve started to get cool with it. They know I’m not staying behind to stalk the boys._ **

**_Cindy: Even if you were staying behind to see the boys, you know one of the players personally so it wouldn’t be that much of a problem._ **

She hesitated before replying back this time. She couldn’t stay behind to see Scott. The fear of what would happen after years of NOT seeing each other would bring. Not knowing what would happen after she left him in his half drunken state that morning nearly four and half years ago. She didn’t want to think about that morning or what would happen when they came face to face again.

**_Me: I don’t think that’s a good idea._ **

**_Cindy: Caity it’s been years now. When are you going to talk to him again?_ **

**_Me: Probably never. You know I’m afraid to face him._ **

**_Cindy: But you shouldn’t be. You were his friend for most his life. Neither of you can really turn your back on that for as long as you think you can._ **

She sighed as she rubbed her temple, knowing full well that Cindy was right but didn’t want to be the one to take the first step. Especially after her freak out from Christmas almost two years ago.

**_Me: Maybe not but I’m not going to be the one to extend the olive branch first._ **

**_Cindy: Oh you’re both so stubborn!_ **

Caity couldn’t help but laugh at that outburst and just imagined the older woman frowning deeply as she stomped her foot in a very Cindy-ish fashion.

**_Me: You should have known this was how it was going to be from the beginning!_ **

**_Cindy: That much is true…. But someday! Someday! You two will be talking again!_ **

**_Me: I don’t think that it’s going to be anytime soon though._ **

**_Cindy: Oh you never know…._ **

She quirked a brow at that text, pursing her lips as she typed back.

**_Me: And what is that supposed to mean?_ **

**_Cindy: Oh nothing. Nothing at all._ **

**_Me: What did you do?_ **

She had a gut feeling that if she didn’t leave soon there’d be a figure coming out back down the hallway to the bench searching through the seats for her.

**_Me: Please tell me you didn’t tell him I was here…_ **

The brunette waited patiently for a reply, her eyes darting up every few seconds to check her surroundings to make sure she was still alone. If the timing was right then all the guys would be either on the bikes or showering at this moment which gave her time to escape before someone came looking for her. Finally her phone dinged as a new text arrived.

**_Cindy: I didn’t do anything! So if anything happens after this….blame Sarah._ **

Caity cursed softly and looked back up quickly towards the benches, ready to duck down if anyone should come down the hallway. Scooting forward on the edge of her seat, she checked the time to see if she’d waited long enough for everyone else to have left so she could try to make her escape now. It was still a little earlier than she wanted but at this rate she didn’t want to be here much longer and have to face Scott himself.

She pocketed her phone and stood, hurrying up all the stairs to the exit, her heart pounding from the combination of fear, anticipation, and exhilaration. Part of her wanted to see the goalie and greet him as an old friend but the other part was too afraid of what he’d say or how he’d act considering their last encounter was her dumping him.

As she neared the exit, she was starting to relax due to the thought of escaping without being discovered and smiled at the security man that approached her, Jerry was his name, saying, “Most of them are gone now. The coast is clear for you. By the time you get to your car, the lot should be nearly empty.” 

“Thanks Jerry. You don’t know how happy I am to hear that.” And she really was. The chances of being stopped by Scott were dropping quickly and it made her feel more at ease. She offered a smile to Jerry as he nodded and questioned, “Are you coming to the Sunday game?”  
  
“Yeah I’ll probably be here and I might finally bring a friend with me to use that other seat.”  
  
“We’ll look forward to seeing you then, ma’am. Good night, Caity.” With that he waved goodbye and walked off to join the other security guards who were starting to lock the place down. She let out a sigh of relief as she walked up the rest of the steps to the exit, thinking about who to bring to the game next time.

As she landed on the level floor, she tensed up slightly, halting on the spot as the feeling of being watched washed over her. She wanted to resist the urge to turn and look back down at the benches, almost one hundred percent positive that someone had come back out. The feeling of eyes on her back didn’t leave for a good twenty seconds and curiosity got the better of her, causing her upper body to turn to her left, allowing her back over her shoulder and sure enough there was someone there. Her breath caught in her throat as she connected eyes with….him. It had been years since he had actually given her his full attention and stared that intently at her. It always felt like he could see right through her, though all the bullshit and right down into the very core of her.

She stared back at him, fear and insecurity apparent on her face and in her eyes….but he had to be too far away to see it. But she could see his expression. Probing and questioning. Possibly wondering what she was doing there and wanting answers. She couldn’t give that to him, not now.

It took a little too much effort to break eye contact with him and hurry out the stadium, unable to shake the feeling of his gaze as she waved goodbye to the security team and nearly jogged the rest of the way to her car. The sooner she got away from the United Center the better. Caity quickly navigated the streets to her small apartment, thankful that not many people knew about. She ignored everyone out celebrating the Blackhawks win as she made her way up to the safety of her place, planning out the bath and glass of wine that she would need to calm her down from that short one minute stare down with Scott.

Upon entering the apartment, her phone began to buzz from an incoming call. Only a few people would call her this late and she suspected Cindy to be the voice on the other end when she blindly answered, her southern accent slipping out due to her frustration, “I hope you can hide Sarah pretty well, Cindy. That was not cool. Not cool at all.” But the response was not what she expected.

“I’m not sure how well my mom can hide her but I think they’re both glad and happy to tell me that you were there, Caity.”

She inhaled sharply, forgetting that she was supposed to exhale as she tried to figure out what to say in return. She remained quiet, earning a sigh from Scott as he continued, “Caity I know you’re still on the line. Why won’t you talk to me? Do you really despise me that much? It’s been over four years now…don’t let our lifelong friendship be forgotten.” But she couldn’t reply. Her only reaction was to pull the phone away from her ear and end the call, tossing the phone onto the couch. Wine wasn’t going to cut it tonight. She needed something stronger. With that thought, she crossed to the kitchen and pulled the bottle of rum from the freezer and proceeded to pour about three double shots worth into a glass, downing it quickly only to wince as it burned all the way down her throat.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------

After the line went dead, Scott sighed and pulled his phone away only to rub his forehead with his free hand as he stared down at her number. Most people were surprised that he didn’t delete it after their falling out back in 2011. No matter how hurt he was from that day, part of him could not remove it from his phone. Just like their texts or her voicemails. He’d long since stopped trying to talk himself into getting rid of all traces of her when she started ignoring his calls and texts…but he couldn’t.

A hand on his shoulder drew his attention from his now black screen. He glanced up and saw a freshly washed and dressed Crawford at his side. “Hey man, are you okay? I haven’t seen you this stressed all year.”

Scott sighed again and shrugged slightly, sliding his phone into his pants pocket before standing up. “I’ll be fine…I…just…saw someone tonight that I haven’t seen in a long time. My sister let me know that they were here at the game but they didn’t….take me knowing they were here very well.” He looked up at Corey only to be greeted with a slightly confused teammate who had one brow raised in question. All Scott could do was shake his head and run his fingers through his short hair. “Don’t worry about it… I’ll deal with it when I can.”  
  
“Okay… but remember that we’re all here for you if you need anything, Scotty.” That name… it reminded him of her. But instead of saying anything he simply nodded and smiled at his fellow goalie before grabbing his bag and heading out. He didn't feel like going to the bar to celebrate with the rest of the guys. Now that he had seen her, she was all he could think about. Right now he longed to be at home and think about a way to catch her before she left at the next game. If what his sister said was right, then he could expect to see more of Caity until the end of the season.


	2. Lunchtime examinations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that this took so long to write. I've been writing it on and off for the month of December but school took up most of my time. Thankfully it's Christmas break (Merry Christmas everyone btw!!!) and I hope to have at least one more chapter coming up before school starts back up on January 7th. I'm not quite sure what to do with the next chapter.... maybe have it from Scott's POV? We'll see! 
> 
> Also I will do a character bio for Caity soon and have it up so that we can all get to know her at the beginning of the story rather than just throwing facts in about her throughout the story. So expect that soon! Maybe I'll make that a chapter in itself. 
> 
> So please do enjoy this chapter and let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions or ideas for the plot! 
> 
> Un-betaed. All mistakes are my own.

The day didn’t seem to be going by fast enough for the brunette girl as she slid into her seat in her second Psychology class around nine in the morning the next day. She groaned lowly as she dropped her bag onto her desk, letting her head rest on it as she tried to take a deep breath. Maybe that alcohol last night wasn’t such a great idea after all.  
“Man… you look like you’re dying. What happened to you, Caity?”

She peeked one eye open to glance up at her classmate and friend, Nola, as she sat down. Nola was the perfect example of sweet, hometown girl with her blonde hair, cute face, pretty smile and kind demeanor. She was a bit on the shorter side compared to Katie but had the fiery attitude when it was needed. Nola was a very good friend to Caity and she was eternally grateful to have someone studying the same major to get close to. If the blonde hadn’t come along then Caity doesn’t know what she would have done.

“Trust me, you don’t want to know,” Caity mumbled, closing her eye to keep the bright fluorescent lights out for just a few more minutes.

“I thought you were going to that hockey game last night. What happened?”

“Oh I went to the game…. It’s the afterwards that was the hell part.” The chair beside her squeaked as it scraped across the floor and Nola settled into it obviously.

“Well what happened? You look like shit.” Caity sighed as she tried to search for the right words but fell short of how to even begin.

After about half a minute, she sighed and looked up at Nola. “Can we talk about this over lunch? After class? It’s…kind of a long story.” Her friend didn’t get to voice a response as the professor walked in and started talking about the upcoming paper. Caity felt a nudge in her side, earning Nola a sideways glance which caught the blonde nodding a yes to her question.

And with that Caity turned her attention back to the front knowing her lunch was going to be long and harder than this class.

\-------------------------

Although she wanted the day to go by faster, once class was over Caity regretted the lunch date with Nola afterwards. She couldn’t back out now but the thought of having to share that particular part of her past did not sit well with her. They chatted about their upcoming paper, seeing what ideas they could come up with and brainstorm how to write about the topics as they slipped into a small bistro they frequented after class regularly. After they placed they order and slid into their usual booth, the brunette began to regret this decision again as Nola turned the conversation back to the one from the beginning of class.

“So…you know you can’t avoid this. What happened Caity?” She tilted her head out of curiosity, one eyebrow slightly raised. As much as she wanted to ignore this and let it fade away, it wouldn’t happen until Nola’s intrigue was satisfied. She opened her mouth a couple of times to try and respond but couldn’t assemble the words in proper sentences.  
With a sigh, Caity dropped her head forward into her hands as she tried to brace herself for the questions to come, knowing it would continue on for a good week as the blonde thought of more questions she felt were left unanswered.

“I know one of the players on the team. He and I were friends growing up. We both come from Lemont. I still talk to his family but he….he and I had a falling out years ago. So I’ve been avoiding him since the last time we talked. It was…for the best.” Katie nodded at the end as if to confirm and assure herself it was true.

“Wait. Hold the phone. You know one of the players? And you go to watch him play?”

“Well he’s a backup goalie so he doesn’t play as much but yes…I do.”

“So…you haven’t talked to him in how long now?”

“It’s been about four years now.”

“F-four years?! Why? What happened between you two? Were you...were you guys involved?”

She sighed yet again, sliding down into her seat as she didn’t want to relive the past. Luckily their food arrived and Caity thanked whatever higher spiritual power was at work for this since it let her stall for a little longer as she grabbed the sandwich and took a big bite. Nola gave her a knowing look and didn’t move to pick up her own sandwich. “You’re not going to get away with this. Spill. I’ll get it out of you sooner or later.”

Oh wasn’t that the truth. Nola didn’t stop until she felt completely satisfied with any topic. It’s why her papers were always so in-depth and longer than required. “Fine…but just know that I’m not happy talking about this.” The other girl perked up and grabbed her sandwich, taking small bites which Caity knew was to keep her mouth free incase a question popped into her mind. “If you must know…yes…we were…but it’s more complicated than that. You see….I had a crush on him since we were teenagers but he didn’t ever feel the same way about me. I was just his buddy then. We were near the end of high school when we started partying and drinking. By the time we started college we were both alcoholics. It was damaging both of us in very negative ways. Many times while we were drunk we’d sleep together….I remember the first morning we woke up next to each other… it wasn’t a good day. We didn’t know what to say to the other and decided to just forget about it. But it ended up happening again… over and over… and we just learned to accept it. We became unofficial friends with benefits. Our partying and drinking began to really affect our school work and his ability to play hockey…so I ended it. I told him that I couldn’t be around him anymore. That I couldn’t keep up that lifestyle of drinking, partying and casual sex. He tried to contact a few times after that but I wouldn’t talk to him.”

Nola chewed the small bite she had in her mouth quickly and swallowed, “So you two were banging after living it up and…. He felt nothing for you? Wait…. Do you still like him?”

She didn’t have an honest answer for that question and tried to string together some sort of explanation. “I don’t know. We haven’t seen each other in years… besides…he’s dating someone now. It’s a girl that was always all over him, trying to get into his pants. Well…. She’s succeeded now. They been together for a good three and half years or so now. She never liked me. She put on this good girl demeanor and played the part in front of him but it never went beyond that.”

“So….homeboy kept fucking you but didn’t make it official and then after you left got with her? I don’t like the sound of him….I bet he takes her out partying now.”

“No… he got sober shortly after I left and has been in recovery for the last couple of years.” Nola gave her a knowing look, eyebrow stretching up in question. “If you must know how I know this, I told you I talk to his family all the time. His mother and I are really good friends. She…thinks it’s a shame that he and I never got together considering all the things we’ve been through and how much time we used to spend together.”

The other girl shook her head, setting the food down and aside so she could lean forward on the table. “Okay then. Tell me what happened last night. I haven’t seen you come into class looking that rough since we had that paper with the hands on project from last semester.”

“I went to the game last night, alone I might add, just to watch…and check on him. I’m so proud of him and what he’s accomplished over the last year and half. The game had to go to a shootout and they won. I usually wait around for the crowd to clear out and be on their way home before I leave. Security has gotten to know me and allow me to do it. Anyway…I was sitting in my seat, texting his mom and just talking….mostly about Scotty…and then she tells me if I should kill anyone it would be his sister. That’s when I knew they told him I was there. After I got that message I tried to hurry and leave but….” Caity looked down at her food, tearing little bits of bread off the crust as she continued quietly, “You know that feeling you get when you know someone is staring at you?”

It was silent for a moment or two before a low hum was the only answer and the brunette continued, “I had that feeling and I knew it was him. I turned and… I saw him. He was staring straight at me. I couldn’t move… I couldn’t even think. He just…stared… I left as fast as possible and got home. I got a call and thought it was his mom or his sister so I just answered it and started sort of yelling at them…turns out it was him. I froze up again and he kept trying to talk to me. I hung up the phone and threw it away from me. Then…I started drinking. I keep a bottle in the freezer for ‘emergencies’.” She said as she made quotations marks with her fingers. “I guess I just drank too much.”

“Do you drink often? I only ask because you mention that you used to be an alcoholic.”

She shook her head, looking up at Nola without any hesitation as she said no. “I drink for special occasions and in dire times of stress, but I know my limits. If I ever get drunk, know that it was something that I felt like I couldn’t control or handle on my own.”

“If you ever need me…you just have to call me. Alright?” The other girl leaned over, laying her hand on Caity’s wrist and gave it a gentle squeeze. She laid her own hand on top and patted it, sending back a silent thank you before clearing her throat.

“So since that is done, how about you and I figure out what to do these papers on because I have no idea what would be a good topic. Why do teachers always have to be so vague about what they want us to write about?”

“Oh I know, right? I feel like they just come up with random things that they know will keep us busy for days…weeks even. But it’s almost over. Midterms are coming up and I don’t know about you but… I can’t wait for spring break. I’ll be setting off for beach in California to enjoy my time and hopefully pick up a hottie.” Nola giggled as she squirmed around out of excitement.

“Before you go and get lost in your daydreams of tanned dudes and the endless sight of exposed skin from being in bathing suits constantly, let’s focus on the assignment and get it done so you can party your heart out there.” And with that the topic was once again turned back to school work, leaving Caity free of questions lingering about her past with Scott. The two decided to meet up later at Caity’s apartment and work on the homework and study guide together as they tried to put a dent into their course load.


	3. Character Bios

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated completely to bios. If a character is put into the story, this is where you can find out their background information.

Character name: Caitlyn Marie Baker  
Age: 26  
Birthday: September 4, 1989  
Height: 5’10”  
Build: Athletic but slim  
Hair: Brown with hints of red  
Eyes: Green/Blue  
Weight: 155 pounds  
Interests: Music, cooking, crafts, reading, exploring, traveling.  
Bio: She was born in Albemarle, North Carolina and has a younger brother, Chris – 23, and lived there until she was ten when her parents divorced. Her father stayed there and eventually remarried. Her mother decided to move her and her brother up to Lemont, IL shortly after the divorce since most of her family lived in that area.  
While she was living in North Carolina, she was involved in ice skating/figure skating, chorus/band, hiking clubs, and outdoor clubs. Upon moving to Lemont, she continued to show interest in them but didn’t take many of these beyond hobbies.  
After hearing that there was an ice rink in her town, she went there every day to practice her ice skating which is how she met Scott, who stopped a fellow team mate from picking on her. They became really good friends after that and graduated together, as well as go to the same college. They went to parties together and developed bad habits with alcohol before she decided to straighten her life out. This lead to her ending her relationship with Scott.  
She is currently in her last year of school to obtain her BA degree in Psychology which she will continue on to study Counseling to become a Marriage and Family Therapist as well as specializing in Substance Abuse. 

Character name: Nola Greene  
Age: 24  
Birthday: March 25, 1991  
Height: 5’8”  
Build: Lean/slim  
Hair: Blonde  
Eyes: Grey  
Weight: 140 pounds  
AN: Bio for Nola will be made as the story progresses.


	4. Facing your problems

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to tweak a few details in the first chapter of the story because I got the dates (rather the days) wrong but everything is right now! 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Next chapter they actually meet up!! 
> 
> Please leave me comments saying what you think. They definitely fuel my creativeness!!

With the rest of her Saturday filled with only school, homework, and her short shift at work, Katie woke the next morning feeling rather oddly refreshed and at ease. All she could think about was her lunch with Nola and the conversation. Talking to a friend about her dreaded past seemed to help Katie which bothered her just as much as settle her. Discussing her past usually left a nasty taste in her mouth as well as a tightening in her chest, but yesterday hadn’t been so bad. Albeit Nola didn’t ask nearly as many questions as she could have given the depth of her curiosity, but having someone to talk to that had no connection to the situation did have a somewhat positive effect.

She reached over to grab her phone to check the time only to find it dead, which she sighed at. How had she forgotten to charge it while she slept? Rolling over, she felt blindly around for the cord, plugged her phone in before setting it down, picked up her glasses and placed them on her face. Once the world was clear and visible, she slid out of bed and straightened the covers and pillows before handling her normal morning bathroom business then headed to the kitchen.

After she had a bagel with cream cheese and a cup of tea prepared, she sat at her small kitchen table and opened her laptop, checking her emails and Facebook, scrolling through the random crap and skimming over the fan pages for the Blackhawks. She read each of them as she slowly nibbled on her breakfast, recounting all the events of the night before, at least the on ice details.

Including the one that night, there were four games left that month at the United Center. Should she even go tonight? Panic started to fill her mind and chest as she thought about what would happen if he knew she was there, especially now that he knew where she would be sitting. On the flip side, he might think that she wouldn’t show up for the game because he did know where to find her.

Katie still had a few hours to decide what her fate was for the night but in the meanwhile there was a particular blonde that deserved a few choice words for her actions from Friday night. She turned on some music to have in the background as she went to retrieve her phone, powering it on as she came back to the living room and settled on the couch. There were a few notifications of emails, missed calls, and game requests which she ignored and opened up her texts, pulling up a conversation with Sarah and started typing.

**_Me: That was not cool. Why would you do that to me, Sarah? You know I don’t want him knowing that I’m there._ **

Setting her phone down, she went over and cleared away the dirty dishes and wiped the table down before her phone buzzed, signaling a response. She went back to her couch and stretched out, opening the new message.

**_Sarah: Why? I don’t see why you two can’t grow up and at least talk. It’s been years…._ **

**_Me: I just… We’re both different now. He might not even want to be around me anymore._ **

**_Sarah: Okay now you’re just making excuses. You need to man up and just try talking to him._ **

**_Me: We haven’t seen each other in years – no thanks to you I might add for the other night – and we haven’t spoken but twice now since I left. What do you and your parents expect is going to happen? That he and I will go back to how we were before…because that is a terrible idea._ **

**_Sarah: Not exactly like it was before. Just no alcohol and partying. That was the big issue with you two then._ **

**_Me: But not the apparent unofficial FWB that would never go anywhere… that was never a problem. No no no….not that._ **

She hoped her natural sarcasm was very clear to Sarah or else the conversation after this would be very awkward. The way her mind steered towards it most of the time as a response often surprised even her. Luckily, it seemed that Sarah did remember that tidbit about Katie.

**_Sarah: As much as I have missed your sarcasm, it’s not going to get you out of this one. You guys need to talk… and soon. I don’t know how much more of Martha I can take._ **

**_Me: What’s she done this time?_ **

**_Sarah: Putting on that sweet girl act to mom and dad. I think mom has seen through it for the last few years now but dad is still a sap for it._ **

**_Me: You think he wouldn’t fall for that anymore after the two girls he had._ **

**_Sarah: You’d think that but no…. she still has him going. I think it’ll take an act of God to get him to realize she’s playing us all. Even Scotty…. he still goes for it too._ **

**_Me: Like I need to hear about your brother and his relationship…. I’d rather keep down my breakfast please, if you don’t mind. A lady isn’t supposed to throw up before noon after she’s ingested more calories._ **

**_Sarah: You are just as lovely as ever, Katie. I’ve always wondered about your secret to staying so thin. So it wasn’t the partying, drinking, and constant sex with my brother in college?_ **

**_Me: I thought you didn’t want to know the dirty bits from those days. Well if you must know there were definitely times where I think those were the most grueling workouts of my life._ **

**_Sarah: Ew…I did not need that mental image in my mind. I’ve seen my brother naked enough when he was a toddler, I don’t need to think about him as a man, giving it to someone…anyone._ **

**_Me: Hey you asked for it!_ **

**_Sarah: …I guess I did. But still. I didn’t need to know that._ **

**_So….are you going to text him? I know he’s waiting on you to make the first move._ **

**_Me: Actually, he called me two nights ago… I thought it was your mom and I yelled at him… didn’t really say much after that… Kind of just… drank a lot… went to school hungover…_ **

**_Sarah: What is wrong with you, girl?! I know you were upset but… to yell at what you thought was my mom… outrageous!_ **

**_Me: You may plan your revenge for another day but for now I have to decide what to do with my evening thanks to that little prank you pulled the other night…I’m not sure if I can use my tickets to go to the game for fear of being bombarded by a six and a half foot shadow from my past!_ **

**_Sarah: Oh don’t even…you know you want to go. You have prime seats and love the game. … Plus you like to stare at my brother. Don’t even lie!_ **

**_Me: …you may have me on that one…but you shan’t win this, oh dear Sarah. I shall have the last laugh!_ **

**_Sarah: You are such a dork and a weirdo. Now go talk to my brother and enjoy the game tonight._ **

And with that she knew the conversation was over. All she’d get after this was more texts pressing her to talk to Scott instead of Sarah and it would grate on her nerves. Even though his sister had good intentions, it still irked Katie that she shoved her nose into a place where it really wasn’t needed.

Instead of opening up a new message, she decided to clear out her notifications and check to see who had called her. Her breath caught as she saw his name in her call log for last night and this morning at least three times. He was trying to reach her…probably to figure out if she was coming tonight or not. As she continued to stare at his number, the idea of seeing him again both delighted and scared her. What would they even talk about after all this time? She had been the one to cut all ties with him. He had tried to stay a part of her life but she didn’t allow it because, at the time, he was toxic to her well-being. She had needed to get her life together, especially after the scare. The one even Sarah didn’t know about.  

No one besides her mom knew about that moment in her life.

With much hesitation, her fingers opened up a new message and slowly typed out a few words.

**_Me: Hi Scott. You called me?_ **

It was a terrible message and full of awkwardness, anyone could see that. What was she supposed to say after four years? Considering what time it was a reply would probably take an hour or so since they’d be finishing up their morning skate before the game. Which gave her time to do some cleaning.

She cranked up the music and started dancing around to the Taylor Swift song that was on.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

An hour and a half later, the apartment was tidy and chores were done, letting Katie flop down on her couch and turn the TV on to check on the news. As a commercial break came on, she picked her phone to check for new messages, freezing as she saw a reply from Scott. She hesitated once again as she hit the notification to open the message.

**_Scott: Yeah I did. I want to meet up with you._ **

It was sent almost immediately after her own text from earlier. Another reply was sent about half an hour after the first one.

**_Scott: Please Katie. I miss you being around. We’ve been friends most of our lives…let’s not just lose it all._ **

She sighed and slid down in her seat, staring at the messages. Her mind bounced back and forth about whether to answer and what to say tumbled around inside. What would they talk about? Obviously not about their…fling…or their partying life. She could just play it off and say she was busy with school work for the day and couldn’t come. But she had a gut feeling that he would be looking for her tonight at the game… and she still hadn’t decided on going or not yet. As she continued to stare at the screen, her phone buzzed and another message appeared below the other two.

**_Scott: Kitty come back to me._ **

‘Well fuck… he just had to throw that line out there….’ She thought with a groan as she flipped over onto her stomach, typing back a reply.

**_Me: Really? You had to say that?_ **

**_Scott: It got your attention, didn’t it?_ **

**_Me: That’s pretty low of you, dude…_ **

**_Scott: I’m sorry. I didn’t know any other way to get you to talk to me. You’ve been avoiding me for years now. I just want to throw this out there. Come meet up with me for lunch so we can talk and catch up. I’ve missed you being around me._ **

**_Me: I don’t know…I’m not sure this is such a good idea._ **

**_Scott: Can’t we just try? I know we’re not the same people as we were back then but you have always been my friend. Can’t we still have that part of it?_ **

She really wanted that. She missed the way they used to just waste time and just enjoy each other’s company. She had dreamed of being back in those times when they were teens with no cares of what their futures held. Katie had had an idea of what she wanted that future to be. Married with a career and at least one kid…..hopefully with her best friend. But that was the past.

**_Me: I guess we could meet up. I don’t know how long you have before you have to be back for your game. Would it be better to meet after the game?_ **

**_Scott: I got a few hours. Why can’t we do both? We do have a lot to catch up on._ **

**_Me: I guess that could work…_ **

**_Scott: Well don’t sound so enthusiastic about spending time with me, Kitty._ **

**_Me: I’m sorry, Scott._ **

**_We can meet up whenever you want. What time do you want to have lunch?_ **

**_Scott: Can we meet up in about half an hour? I’ll text you the address._ **

**_Me: You want me to be ready in half an hour and at a place? You think I got superpowers while I was away? I’ll see you when I get there._ **

With that she tossed her phone on the table as she ran off to her bedroom to find something to wear, debating on doing makeup and dressing up a little nicer than normal for this lunch rendezvous that would be sure to end in an interesting manner.


	5. Catching up to do

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I've been working on this very slowly and when time actually allows me to. Plus my creativeness comes and goes rapidly so I'm surprised I haven't had to go longer without updating. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you guys like this story and I'm, hopefully, going to be working on it more this week and might have another update by next week for you all. Please let me know what you think or if you have any suggestions. I would love to read them! I've been thinking about pairing up a few of the guys in the story but I haven't fully decided on it yet. But it will go from February 2015 up until possibly June or July 2016. That's the timeline I have planned out for this but we have to see how the rest come out after this. 
> 
> Un-betaed, all mistakes are my own.

She fiddled nervously with her scarf as she stared at the restaurant they were meeting up at. She had been sitting in her car for nearly twenty minutes gathering the courage to get out and walk inside to face him. Part of her wanted to just leave and not have to confront him or his questions. Caity was pretty sure Scott would be on a Nola level with the amount of question considering how long it had been since they’d seen one another. Needless to say, she wasn’t prepared for it. She had prepared a few answers for questions she knew would come on the way over but didn’t have a slight idea of what to really expect. Whatever happened, she knew it was going to either turn out okay or really bad...and part of her was leaning more towards the latter.

  
Taking in a deep breath, Caity turned her car off and slowly got out, putting some time on the meter and checking both ways before crossing the street. She gave a brief glance into the place to try and spot him but couldn’t spot his large frame on that side of the restaurant. Her nerves were getting worse the closer she got to the door, making it hard for her to grab the handle with her shaking hand. She didn’t think it would be this nerve-wracking to see him again.

  
The hostess smiled brightly at her, tilting her head as she asked, “Table for one, miss?”

“Oh no… I’m…” _I’m meeting up with and old friend that just happens to be a celebrity sitting in your restaurant that I used to fuck while drunk out of my mind._ She shook her head a little to clear it as she rubbed her palms down the fabric of her jeans over her hips. “I’m supposed to be meeting someone here and I… I don’t know if he’s arrived yet.”

“Oh, alright. Let me check.” She moved to the hostess stand that held all their notes and seating chart, skimming over it. “You’re Caity, correct?”

Caity nodded slowly before clearing her throat and barely getting out a “Yes” in response before the lady started off to the back of the establishment, signaling for her to follow. She did so slowly, trying to settle her rapidly beating heart. A lot had changed since they last saw one another. She didn’t look the same as when they last talked in his dorm room.

Part of her wasn’t sure how he react to seeing her now and the time until that moment was rapidly decreasing.

The hostess stopped at the very back at a booth, leaning in slightly (more than Caity really cared for her to do so) and motioned back to Caity before turning and smiling, waving her over. This was it. The moment that couldn’t be put off any longer.

Time seemed to drag by as she moved, in what seemed like slow motion, over to the empty side against the wall, going around the other woman and looking down as she slid into her seat. The lady asked, a bit too chipper, “What can I get you to drink?”

“Um… w-water, please.” She didn’t need to look up to know the lady had already skittered off to make it. There was this big internal struggle between looking up or looking at the oh-so very interesting wood pattern of the table. Friday night had been bad enough with the 250 feet between them but this…. This was so much worse.

Before she could decide on which to do, the hostess returned with her drink and Caity thanked her quietly before she skipped off back to the front of the restaurant. Her leg jiggled out of nervousness and she kept rubbing her palms slowly along the tops of her thighs, sucking in a slow steady breath. She couldn’t spend the rest of the next hour staring at the table.

“Is it really that hard to be around me, Kitty?”

_Fuck._ Hearing his voice that close sent another round of adrenaline through her and she blinked rapidly, swallowing quietly as she finally looked up at him. There he was. Scott Darling. Looking just about the same as that last day she saw him. His hair was styled differently and his beard was filled in more (and he was obviously sober) but other than that it was the same old Scott.

It took her nearly half a minute before she could even work up any sound for a response. “You should know the answer to that. The last time we saw each other was in your dorm the morning after…we….” She trailed off and reached for her water, sticking the straw in and taking a long sip to avoid finishing that sentence. He only nodded and sighed, leaning back in his seat.

“Yeah… I know. I wasn’t even fully aware of what was happening that day. I just know you were waking me up and crying and yelling at me. I don’t even remember you leaving. I remember trying to call you that night and the next day but you wouldn’t answer.”

She remembered those few days all too well. She was going through withdrawals as she was trying to quit cold turkey from all her addictions; alcohol, ecstasy, whatever drugs were at the parties they went to together, sex…. and Scott.

“I couldn’t. I had to do what I did. I was sinking into a hole I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to come out of,” she said with a soft sigh. Her fingers played with the contours of her glass as she looked back up at him. That wasn’t the only reason she had done it. But no one was going to know that one. “I’m sorry… I should have gone about it differently but… Scott…. I didn’t know if you were ever going to change. I had to get away. You….you were kind of toxic to me back then.”

“Yeah I know… I don’t really blame you for leaving. I just wish that… I wish that we could have found each other again sooner.” He leaned forward, placing his arms on the table and laced he fingers together, a little too close to hers, causing her to pull her drink back a few inches. “You kept in contact with my family but not me. Why? Why wouldn’t you talk to me? Especially after Christmas two years ago. I know that was you.”

Caity sighed and turned to the window, debating on just leaving to avoid these awkward questions. It was one of the things she didn’t want to really answer but knew would come up.

“Because I wasn’t ready to face you. Everything was still too fresh for me.”

“Two years after you last saw me wasn’t long enough?”

Huffing, she reached for her purse, starting to slide out of the booth. “Yeah and it seems like it’s still not the right time to face you.”

He moved faster than she did and was already standing and blocking the way out before she even had her legs out from under the table. “Please, Caity …. Please don’t go. I…. I really want you to stay.” The sincerity in his voice was apparent and loud, speaking to her rational side, but the irrational side was screaming for her to run. It wasn’t until she looked up to meet his eyes that the rational side took over completely.

He looked like he was ready to drop down and plead his heart out. It wasn’t a look that Scott wore often growing up but she knew that look and couldn’t tell him no. She nodded slightly and shifted back into the booth, watching as he moved back across into his own seat.

“Look…Scott… can we not talk about that right now. There’s a time and a place and this is definitely not the place for it. So please… just not now, okay?” She looked at him with almost the same look as he had a few moments ago. She didn’t want to talk about that time ever but it would be better to do it in private rather than a public setting such as this. She almost sighed in relief when he nodded and opened his menu. “They have a nice chicken salad sandwich here…thought you’d like it.”

That she couldn’t help but smile at. “So you do remember my go to lunch, huh? After all this time?”

“Well it is kind of hard to forget when I had to watch you eat it for how many years?”

Caity laughed slightly and flipped to the sandwich section, reading the ingredients before giving an approving nod. “I think it’ll do just fine. I don’t actually eat chicken salad that much anymore. My...uh…diet has changed a bit.”

“The great Caity not eating chicken salad? Are you sure you haven’t been abducted? Be honest with me.” He leaned in, looking around before whispering, “Are you a pod person? Because if so…. I don’t know if I can keep quiet about this.”

She smirked and leaned in a bit, dropping her own voice to a whisper, “You know I can’t answer that. It’s classified. Do you want them storming the place and erasing everyone’s memories? You saw how chipper that hostess was when she got to come back here and see you again. Let’s not take that away from her.” With a smile, he leaned back, shrugging his shoulders and going back to his menu.

“We can’t have them storming the place and taking away a happy moment for a fan. It wouldn’t do. So let’s just pick up where we were before that question.” At that moment, the waitress came over and took their orders, spending a little too much time on making sure that Scott’s order was perfect before going to turn it in.

“So… since we’re here to catch up… what did you want to know? I know you must have a ton of questions for me,” she said as she slid down in her seat and prepared for the nonstop stream that was sure to come.

“I guess just about what you’ve been up to. What’s been happening with you since we last saw each other?”

“Well… I started focusing on school and found a steady job after I got completely clean. I ended up moving back in with my mom until I saved up enough to move out on my own. I have been the proud resident of a one bedroom apartment that borders between the good and the bad side of town. I am currently a partial intern, partial employee at a therapy clinic where I am learning to be a QP as I finish up my last year of my bachelor’s degree before I start my advanced program for counseling. I’ve been hyper focused on school and have caught up enough to graduate nearly a year early. So… I’m on the right track.” She shrugged one shoulder, taking a sip of her drink before continuing, “When I’m not at work, at school, working on homework, or having what little bit of a social life I do have, I’ve been spending at the gym. I decided about five months after I last saw you that I would start taking better care of myself. I had already wrecked so much havoc on myself and I needed to change it. Other than that I’m pretty much the same as before.”

She smiled slightly and tilted her head as she waited for the questions to continue pouring out. He sat silently as he processed everything she said, finally looking at her and asking, “What’s a QP?”

It took a moment for her to fully accept his question, laughing softly at the fact that that was what he asked about first. “It stands for Qualified Professional. It’s just a term for a title in the field. I go out to families, under supervision of course, that are in the company for mental health care. I do house visits and ask questions, see how their treatment plan is working for them and take notes for the therapists if adjustments need to be made. I’m sort of the middle man between client and therapist, honestly.”

Scott nodded slowly as he shifted slightly in his seat, draping an arm over the back as he looked her over. “So… you’re trying to become a therapist? What kind?”

This is something she was having trouble deciding on. She could specialize in more than one field which would benefit her career greatly. “I’m have issues with that. I want to study substance abuse but I also want to focus on family therapy but doing that one would also mean I’d have to take on marriage counseling which I do not want to do. I don’t think I’ll be qualified in the right way to give couples advice on love and how to make their marriage last considering I haven’t had a healthy relationship at all in my life.” She chuckled a few times before realizing that Scott might take that the wrong way. He simply nodded in agreement but said nothing.

Thankfully their food arrived at just that moment, allowing them a couple minutes of silence as they started to eat. She would still occasionally glance up between bites, debating on where to go from there. Halfway through a bite, she stopped to just observe him. The way he moved. She couldn’t help but laugh when he got a few crumbs stuck in his beard. The sound of her laughter drew his attention, causing him to raise a brow out of curiosity. “What’s so funny?”

“Just the fact that you’re as messy as ever. You trying to save some of that for later, Scotch?” She pointed to his chin before grabbing a napkin and reaches over, dusting off the crumbs. It wasn’t until her reached up and plucked the napkin from her fingers to do it himself that she realized how wrong of a move it had been on her part. But it had felt so natural like back when they were they were teenagers.

Caity ducked her head, retracting her hand quickly as she whispered, “Sorry…I shouldn’t have done that.”

“Nah, it’s okay. I just didn’t think it would happen. Don’t be like that,” he said as he gently nudged her leg under the table. It made her smile softly as she nudged him back, smirking slightly up at him. “So…a therapist, huh? Why a therapist?” Scott asked as he proceeded to take another bit of his sandwich, being mindful to not get anymore crumbs on himself.

“Well after all the crap I’ve been through in my life, I thought I’d do something to help others. After I stopped talking to you, I decided to get my life straight and get clean. With that it meant I had to see a therapist. My mom wanted me to do it. She said it would help my recovery process. I hated it at first but after about two months it started appealing to me. My therapist helped me get on the right path in school and even helped me with my internship so I could get it done faster. She’s been a really good mentor.” Caity smiled fondly as she thought of Rebecca and made a mental note to call her later.

Scott paused and gave her a once over, taking in her expression as she talked. It was nice to see Caity speaking about how she’s changed her life positively and seeing her genuine smile come through. It was a sight the goaltender hadn’t seen since their last night together in his bed, not that he remembered too much from that night. He had to shake his head to rid himself of the memory as his phone went off with a text, drawing his attention.

**_Crow: Hey man. You disappeared on me. Where’d you go? No one in the locker room seems to know what happened._ **

**_Darling: I’m having lunch with an old friend. Sorry to ditch like that._ **

**_Crow: It’s cool man. Just a little worried. Heads up though. We got to be here an hour earlier for tonight. I don’t know what’s planned but just don’t be late._ **

**_Darling: Got it._ **

Tucking his phone back into his pocket, Scott smiled up at Caity as she gave him a questioning look which he just shrugged off so she wouldn’t worry about it. “Just one of the guys letting me know about the game.”

The brunette couldn’t hold in the snort as she rolled her eyes. “Did they really think you weren’t going to show up for your job? Did they think I was going to kidnap you?”

“Nah, nothing like that. We’re having to meet up a little earlier for some reason. It’s no big deal.”

“Oh…well…. Was there anything else you wanted to as me? I don’t really need to ask you anything since well… you know… your mom and sister…”

He pursed his lips slightly as he laced his fingers together and let them rest on his stomach. “Yeah about that… why did you keep in contact with them but not ever get back up with me?”

“Scott, I already said I don’t want to talk about that. Why can’t we leave the past in the past?” If they got into an argument everything was going to come out, and she didn’t need to tell him the reason she left him.

It took a couple of seconds but he nodded slowly and took a sip of his water before saying, “If you don’t want to, then I’ll stop asking. But I am going to ask for one thing.”

_‘Well this isn’t going to end well…_ ’ she thought as she straightened up, bracing for what was to come. “And that would be?”

A playful smile crept into place on his lips as he leaned towards and said, “You coming with me and the guys tonight for dinner after the game."


	6. You're not a stalker, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I feel like this is mostly a filler chapter but if you guys like I could add the dinner scene into the story just for fun. 
> 
> Un-betaed. All mistakes my own.

How did she manage to get herself into this situation? Here she was being escorted to the back of the United Center after a tough OT loss to the New York Rangers. Part of her was hoping that the dinner plans would be canceled due to possibly low moral or something while the other part was hoping to see Scott again, but she was suppressing that part of her mind. For now, she stood in the hallway fretting over whether this was such a good idea or not. A few people from the organization passed by her, eyeing her which made her wonder if her makeup was smudged. She turned towards the wall and pulled her phone out, turning the camera on to use as a mirror and smiled in relief when nothing looked out of place.

She turned back and was about to shove her phone back into her back pocket but she was greeted by a strange voice saying, “Ah you didn’t have to try and sneak a picture. All you had to do was ask and I’d be willing to take one with you.” Caity jumped as she locked eyes with a very smug looking Andrew Shaw. He smirked as he held his arms open as if waiting on her to jump on the opportunity. “Are we going to take a picture or are you going to stare at me all night? I mean I know I’m not as pretty as Toews or Sharpy but I’m not that bad.”

She couldn’t help but scoff softly and slide her phone into her pocket. “If you stopped taking pucks to the face, you could be as pretty as them if your little heart desired it.” He looked awestruck that someone would say such a thing to him but he couldn’t stop the laugh or the smile that made its way onto his face.

“You got spunk, I’ll give you that.”

“That’s not all I got,” she replied, crossing her arms as she leaned against the wall.

“Oh I don’t doubt it but still…. It makes me wonder. What’s a girl like you doing standing in the hall outside our locker room?”

“If you’re trying to imply that I’m a groupie, you have the wrong idea. I don’t just put out because someone is famous, sweetie.”

His brow arched up as he mimicked her stance. “Still you’ve got to be out here for a reason. Did you sneak past security to catch a glimpse of yours truly?” Shaw smirked again and cocked his hip, causing her to laugh.

“Shaw! What are you doing?” another male voice boomed down the hallway drawing both of their attentions. A very perturbed looking Jonathan Toews made his way over with a shy Teuvo Teravainen trailing along. Both men stopped behind their teammate while the captain tried to assess the situation. “What’s going on here, Shaw?”

“I’m not doing anything! I was making polite conversation, Captain Serious!” Shaw exclaimed in a slight huff which drew an eye roll from Toews before he turned towards Caity.

“I’m terribly sorry if he’s been rude to you. He’s usually really good about keeping his rudeness in check.” Toews glared slightly at his winger but Caity just smiled and laughed.

“Trust me. If the Mutt was bothering me he wouldn’t have been standing when you came along.”

The forwards all looked at her in surprise at first but each expression changed right afterwards. Shaw’s turned into one of a challenge while Teuvo looked up at the captain in slight distress. Toews however simply looked her over once before smiling slightly, stating, “That I would love to see. Someone to finally put him on his ass off the ice.” His comment earned another laugh from her, her hand coming up to cover her mouth as she did. The boys all stared at her again, sort of captivated by the sweet, bell like laugh and visibly relaxed as Toews extended his hand out in a greeting. “Nice to meet you, miss. I’m Jonathan Toews.”

She happily shook his head and then the other two in turn, smiling sweetly at them. “I know who you all are. I’m Caity spelled with a C, not a K. Everyone always ends up spelling it wrong so…”

Toews nodded in understanding, “People used to get my last name wrong all the time so I know how it is. Nice to meet you Caity. May I ask why you’re waiting here in the hallway?”

“Oh I’m waiting on a friend of mine. We’re supposed to go to dinner after the game,” she said rather reluctantly and shifted a little from side to side. Scott probably didn't mention to the guys that he would be bringing someone else along with the team, which made her come to the conclusion that stating it out loud might not be believable.

She was pulled from that thought before it could grow any further as Shaw tossed his arm around her shoulders, grinning and saying, “Well if he takes too much longer I might kidnap you and take you to dinner myself. A gentleman shouldn’t keep a lady waiting so long.” To which the captain reached over and grabbed his forward by the ear, pulling him away.

“And a gentleman wouldn’t put himself all over a lady without permission first. Ask before you touch, Mutt.” He looked at Caity with an apology in his eye but she just giggled softly and shook her head as she waved a hand, signaling it was alright. He let go of Shaw’s ear (which he went to Teuvo and complained about how the captain gets away with this type of abuse) and turned back to her. “You said you were waiting on a friend? Is it one of the staff? I can go find them if you want so you don’t have to wait much longer.”

Caity shook her head waved her hands as he suggested it, “Don’t worry about it. I’m sure he’ll be out soon enough so you really don’t have to do anything.” More voices traveled down the hall as a group of men made their way towards the exit past her and the three forwards. The team and the staff were finally all starting to make their way home for the night, a few of them stopped to say goodnight to Toews, Teuvo and Shaw, nodding to Caity, mainly because she was with men they knew, before they left. A few of the players hung around and started talking to the captain about practice plans before their next away game. She listened to them quietly and pressed against the wall to try and be as small as possible. The minutes ticked by as the crowd around her grew in size and all she could think about was what was taking Scott so long to come out of the locker room.

She knew that goalies had bulky equipment but she didn’t think it would take him this long to appear. Even back in high school, he always took longer than she did to get ready for any event which earned him many chirps over the years of their friendship. Just as she was about to lose hope and head home while admitting defeat, the locker room door opened once again and two more people stepped out, deep in conversation possibly about the game and what they could have done differently. She breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that one of them was Scott and resisted the urge to call out to him. He’d see her soon enough.

And sure enough as the pair made their way to the exit, his curiosity peeked as he saw about half the team crowded together near the exit, making him wonder why they didn’t just talk outside since the hallway wasn’t the widest to accompany so many grown men. He could hear Sharpy telling a joke which got the group laughing, including a sweet feminine laugh he wasn’t expecting, causing him to stop a moment. Thankfully Crawford wasn’t paying as much attention as normal due to the loss and Scott was able to follow behind him after a short fumble.

As they neared the group, he peered over his teammates, thankful for his height, and spotted the source of the laugh; Caity. She was in the middle of the group, chatting away with Sharpy and Toews like they were old friends. It made him smile to see her so open and relaxed like when they were teenagers. And as if on cue, she glanced his way and caught his eye, raising one of her brows as she crossed her arms. The guys noticed her change in demeanor and followed her gaze up to the goalie. Part of him wanted to blush madly and hide as he felt like a kid that had just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar but the urge to challenge her look back took over, making him raise a brow of his own and tilt his head ever so slightly to one side.

“I was wondering how long you were going to make me wait. I swear you take longer to get ready than I did back in school! I was sure I was going to die of starvation before you showed up.” Now the whole group was looking his way, including his fellow goaltender with a questioning expression.

He cleared his throat and refrained from ducking his head out of embarrassment as he replied with a simple “sorry”, the need to challenge slowly starting to ebb away due to guilt. Caity shook her head and gently made her way through the group to him, nudging him in the stomach as she continued, “Damn, Scotch, I didn’t mean to upset you. But I am glad you finally showed up. You took so long that I was out here getting pawed at by Shaw! I don’t know what I would have done if your captain here didn’t show up to save me. He's such a hero!” She pretended to swoon and sigh like damsels in distress from old movies, playing up the act to make sure the guys didn't think she was being serious.

Shaw yelled out to try and defend himself but the rest of the team just chuckled and a few scolded him playfully as Scott smiled down at her. “You and I both know you could handle him. You could handle yourself against most of the guys here,” he looked at his teammates, holding up a hand and added, “no offense, guys, but she’s tough,” which earned a few scattered chuckles and a Seabrook saying, “I call that a challenge!”

She couldn’t help but laugh, shaking her head, “Come on now, Scott. Give them a little hope! My power is supposed to be a secret! You know the sweet, kind, small girl that looks hopeless and weak but is strong enough to bring men to their knees in tears, that sort of thing. Now my secret is exposed!”

“Come on, Caity… we both know that doesn’t work even if you are a southern sweetheart. Even I know better than to mess with girls that have southern genes running through them. That didn’t end well for me last time, remember?” Oh did she remember that time. It was near the end of their freshman year and their exams were closing in as was the pressure of exam time. It didn’t help that her dad was already pressuring her and her brother to come back for the summer, nor did the fact that her mom and her new husband were already talking her ears off about looking into college already as well as try and move them into a new house. The stress plus the added hormone imbalance of her lovely ‘lady time’ grew to be too much and Scott was the unfortunate victim of her outburst.

She pursed her lips at the memory and shook her head. “You wouldn’t leave me alone and you knew I was stressed as it was. I’m sorry but mimicking a terrible, thick southern accent and talking in it nonstop about stereotypical southern things was too much. At least your nose healed. It could have been much worse!”

He smiled a little and patted the top of her head, which she swatted away and glared up at him, “I know it could have been and I’m thankful that my nose did heal. Now… how about I introduce you to the guys and we go out and get dinner like I said earlier?”

"Well...I guess that will do. But remember, Scotch, I could kick you ass as a teen, I can still do it now!" She raised a fist up teasingly and shook it a bit before trying to sling it up and around his shoulders as best she could due to their eight inch height difference.

They made their way out of the building as he started naming all the guys in the group (which she knew them but wanted to be polite), each of them coming up and shaking her hand or waving at her as they made their way to respective cars after they decided on where to meet up. Crawford trailed along at the back of the group, his eye darting between his backup goalie and the girl, trying to figure out the situation why he hadn’t heard of this girl before now. Was this the person Scott was worrying about a few nights ago? How could he go from worrying so hard to this carefree nature in such a short amount of time?

At that moment, Corey decided to make it his responsibility to learn more about this new girl.


End file.
